Jasmine Mian

Biography

Jasmine Mian had entered high school as a track and cross-country runner, but was quickly hooked on wrestling. While attending Brock University,  she won the CIS national title in 2011 and bronze medals at the World University Championships in 2010 and 2012. In pursuit of her Olympic dream, she moved to Calgary after earning her undergraduate degree so that she could train at the national centre. The move proved to be beneficial in 2014 as she won her first senior national title and made her senior world championship debut. She also won gold at the World University Championships and bronze at the Commonwealth Games. In 2015 she returned to the world championships, but competed up a weight class at 55kg and posted a top-10 finish. To earn her spot on the Olympic team, she had to defeat two former world medallists (Genevieve Morrison and Jessica MacDonald) at the national trials. Mian finished 12th at Rio 2016.

Getting to know…

Family: Comes from large blended family that includes her mother Catherine Jones, stepfather Brent Elsey, father Shahid Mian and eight siblings: Doug, Crystal, Sheila, Mike, Ismael, Donna, Hareem and Ishaq… Getting into the Sport: Started wrestling at age 13… While playing flag football, the coach noted her small size and quickness as being good for wrestling, which he also coached… Has always been really competitive and likes that sport allows her to put something on the line and take risks in a safe environment where she can see the rewards and track them in her journal… Outside Interests: Works as a teaching assistant at the University of Calgary where she is pursuing her Masters of Science in Experimental Psychology… Graduated from Brock University with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology… Volunteers as a Big Sister in the Big Brothers Big Sisters recreation program, sharing her love of health, wellness and activity… Odds and Ends: Nicknames: Jaz, Jazzy… Had her Olympic dream sparked during Atlanta 1996 when she stayed up past her bedtime to watch Donovan Bailey win 100m gold and then danced around her living room in her pajamas… Always paints her nails before a competition… Favourite motto: “Turn your can’ts into cans and your dreams into plans”… Role model is two-time Olympic medallist Carol Huynh for putting women’s wrestling on the map and being a great ambassador for the sport… Best friends with Olympic teammate Erica Wiebe since they went on their first national team trip together at age 16…